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Clash has all the makings of a classic

From Cristiano Ronaldo versus Lionel Messi to Wayne Rooney versus Thierry Henry, this Champions League final shapes up as a classic matchup in European club football's showpiece.

Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo eyes the ball during a training session ahead of Wednesday's Champions League final match between Manchester United and Barcelona, at the Rome Olympic stadium, Tuesday, May 26, 2009. (MANU FERNANDEZ / ASSOCIATED PRESS)

By Robert MillwardASSOCIATED PRESS

Wed., May 27, 2009

ROME–From Cristiano Ronaldo versus Lionel Messi to Wayne Rooney versus Thierry Henry, this Champions League final shapes up as a classic matchup in European club football's showpiece.

Manchester United against Barcelona features two of the most entertaining teams in football in a contest to determine which is the strongest in Europe, if not the world.

A glance at the two talented strike forces and imaginative midfields on show at Rome's Stadio Olimpico today (TSN, 1:30 p.m.; kickoff at 2:45) gives neutral fans a taste of what could be one of the best-ever finals.

"I think they are two great teams who in my mind play the best football, and whoever wins the final in Rome will be proclaimed the best team in the world," Messi said. "It's been my best year, without doubt. For the football, the play, for the goals and I hope to crown it with the Champions League."

A strong contender to succeed Man United's Ronaldo as FIFA player of the year, Messi missed out on Barcelona's 2006 triumph because he was injured and didn't make it to the final against Arsenal.

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Now the Argentina star faces a Man United side that won the title last season by beating Chelsea in a penalty shootout in Moscow and is aiming to become the first club since AC Milan in 1989-90 to lift the trophy two seasons in a row.

Having won the Premier League for the third consecutive season and tied Liverpool's record of 18 league titles, United is chasing its fourth trophy of the season. Sir Alex Ferguson's team has also captured the FIFA Club World Cup and domestic League Cup to take the veteran manager's haul at United to 26 trophies in 23 years after 10 in seven as manager of Aberdeen.

Barca hopes to complete a season's treble after winning the Spanish League and Cup in coach Pep Guardiola's first season in charge.

Last year, United had to go to penalties to subdue dogged but unspectacular Chelsea after a 1-1 draw in rain-soaked Moscow. Rome has been warm and dry for several days, and now United takes on a Barcelona team that will be looking for goals from the first minute, having scored more than 150 in league and cup games this season.

In Messi, Samuel Eto'o and Henry, who hopes to shake off a knee injury for the final, Barcelona has a strike force to match or even outplay United's front men. Ferguson is unlikely to field Ronaldo, Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Carlos Tevez all at the same time, and there is speculation two of them will be on the bench when the game kicks off.

Likewise, Ferguson is unlikely to field midfielders Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs at the same time against the top-quality duo of Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta.

But Ferguson should have the edge when it comes to defence.

If Rio Ferdinand can shake off a calf muscle injury and play alongside Nemanja Vidic in central defence, that lineup at the back can show why the team went a British-record 1,311 minutes without conceding a goal in the league during mid-season.

Barcelona, by contrast, is counting the cost of having Brazilian rightback Daniel Alves and French leftback Eric Abidal missing through suspension and Mexican centreback Rafael Marquez out through injury.

The only other thing missing from this final are any Italians.

Although the showpiece game is being played in Italy's capital, Serie A missed out again in a competition it used to dominate when AC Milan and Juventus were at their best.

Now Italy's top teams can only watch, although there are security fears that local fans may try to ambush the spectacle by targeting the visiting 50,000 spectators from England and Spain, who have been advised to stay away from certain parts of the city on match day.

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